The selected book is called Cheating Welfare: Public Assistance and the Criminalization of Poverty. The author of the book is Kaaryn S. Gustafson. It’s publication was in 2011. The book explores the enactment of welfare policies and their impact on the people of the United States. The general argument of the book surrounds th eoppresssion of the poor by welfare and criminal justice systems. The book explains the meaning of welfare and criminalization as used in the book. The entire argument describes the welfare policies drafted in the United States of America and their effects on the lives of the poor. The book states that the welfare and justice systems have altered the meaning of welfare because it is not used as it is supposed. According to Gustafson (2011), the officials in the United States changed the meaning of the term into a word used to brand ‘welfare mothers or welfare queens.’ Besides, Gustafson states that welfare policies cause poverty and criminality stigmas. Gustafson affirms this statement by arguing that welfare policies adopt the criminality of the underprivileged persons in the United States. Welfare policies in the United States intend to reduce poverty and protect the less fortunate individuals. However, that is not the case as an exploitation of the poor is championed by the welfare policies ( Gustafson, 2011) . For instance, the policies target monitoring the poor and protecting taxpayer money as their central purposes instead of offering economic security to the less fortunate members of society. As a result of monitoring the poor, they engage in welfare cheating because they are regarded as criminals for being beneficiaries of public benefits. Both the welfare system and the criminal justice system treat welfare beneficiaries as liars, cheaters, and thieves because they cheat to be part of welfare beneficiaries ( Gustafson, 2011) .
The author begins by giving the meaning of criminalization as used in the book. Criminalization describes the state policies and practices associated with welfare ( Gustafson, 2011) . Under criminalization, the author reveals how welfare officials deny majority of the underprivileged their welfare benefits, causing the stigmatization, scrutiny, and ruling of the poor. Several welfare policies adopt hidden criminality among the poor by accusing them of faking their identities to become welfare beneficiaries. The book addresses criminality in the view of collaboration between the welfare system and the criminal justice system to suppress the poor ( Gustafson, 2011) . The collaboration happen is fostered in the manner that welfaere officials take cheating individuals to court and they get convicted without giving them a fair justice.
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The book is written by a single author named Gustafson. Even though people have different perceptions on the quality of a research coducted by a single or multiple authors, Gustafson’s research is rich in facts because he sufficiently addresses every part of his title. The way he exposes the rogue welfare and justice systems is sufficient. His discussion indicates that he clearly understands the crucial parts of his title that need a priority. Besides, he presents ideas in a manner that readers can easily comprehend. The difference made by the approach of a single author when presenting an issue is augumented trust. Single authors present ideas they have adequate information on, unlike multiple authors, where every author has to come up with their augments. So trust can be earned to works presented by single authors because it is true depection on how they think about the issues they present. As long as an author adequately addresses their title, the quality of their content is not questionable.
The issues of the selected book relate to the lectures, readings, and videos of the course as follows. The central issues discussed in my book of choice include welfare policies, welfare recipients, welfare cheating, and crime control in the United States ( Gustafson, 2011) . These are the same ideas presented in the course through lectures, readings, and videos. In the book, Gustafson talks about the purported aim of welfare policies in the United States and the manipulation of the policies that cause welfare cheating and criminalization of poverty. Therefore, the book is a supplementary to the courses materials because it helps to understand in depth the lectures and readings provided in class. According to Gustafson (2011), the intended purpose of welfare policies is to help in offering economical security to the poor in the United States. However, that has never been the case as the welfare system constantly coerces the poor using the policies leading to conduction of cheating crimes by the poor.
As a result of intimidation, the poor embarks on welfare cheating to benefit from the welfare system. Welfare charlatans do not do it with their intention but to ensure that they become part of the welfare system’s beneficiaries ( Gustafson, 2011) . They cheat because they are unable to acquire the benefits on a fairground since welfare officers block them from the benefits. As a result of the cheating, the only way to become beneficiaries, the welfare system and the criminal justice system classifies them as thieves, a manner that is termed as poverty criminalization. So, there is no welfare justice for the poor in the United States. Both the book and the course materials intend to bring the matter of mistreatment of the poor in the United States to the limelight. By doing this, the other poverty-caring bodies in the United States may come together to have the matter addressed to end the criminalization of poverty.
I have learned how the manipulation of welfare policies in the United States causes havoc to the poor. It is difficult for a nation to economically grow when the nation does not offer economic support to the less fortunate. The United States is among countries with poor individuals, and it is promising how welfare policies are formulated to help in offering an economic boost to the deprived. However, it becomes so disgusting when I understand how these policies are used against the unfortunates. Welfare fraudsters may be blamed but understanding Gustafson’s book would make one conceptualize that welfare fraudsters do not do anything wrong regarding the kind of treatment they receive when trying to become welfare beneficiaries. There is no opportunity offered for the underprivileged to become welfare beneficiaries, instead, they are intimidated ( Gustafson, 2011) . The importance of the reading is creating awareness of the poor’s mistreatment through welfare policies. This reading may make the criminal justice system and the welfare system to reevaluate their actions by ensuring that the less fortunate in the United States become part of the welfare policies’ beneficiaries.
In conclusion, the vices of the welfare and criminal justice systems need to be exposed. The exposure would be fostered by having a large population reading Gustafson’s book. As a result, I would recommend this book to other students because it is one of the readings that can change the United States into a better country for all of its citizens by championing for the correction of the Wwelfare system vices. Sincerely, the United States cannot easily achieve its dreams if poverty lingers in the country. The reading exposes how rotten the welfare system and the criminal justice system are when it comes to playing their mandate. The welfare system’s chief role is to give economic security to the poor, yet it does not address the issue; it oppresses them through poverty criminalization. Welfare cheating would not exist if the welfare system fairly conducted its mandate. The criminal justice system fails to address the issue by looking at the cause of welfare cheating; instead, it focuses on convicting fraudsters causing poverty criminalization. There could be a possibility that the criminal justice system works in conjunction with the welfare system to criminalize poverty at their interests. Therefore, recommending this reading to other students would be important in spreading the information on poverty criminalization. Once many people get to understand the vices pioneered by the welfare and criminal justice systems on the poor, justice may be forced to save the country. The students will also become shareholders in those systems and they may change the situation if they understand it early enough. Therefore, through recommendation, the poor may be saved from oppression by the two named systems.
References
Gustafson, K. S. (2011). Cheating Welfare: Public assistance and the criminalization of poverty . NYU Press.
